The Truth
Tap.
Ganjeol set his spoon down on the table.
The white grains of rice sat there untouched, exactly as they were.
And then he simply stared into empty space without saying a single word. It was proof enough of just how furious he was.
Perhaps that was why Tak didn't dare say anything either.
For about a minute, Ganjeol glared at nothing. A dozen ways to vent his rage flashed through his mind, but he carried none of them out. This was not the time for fury. It was the time for damage control.
"You said only one of the bodyguards made it back alive?"
"Yes, my lord. Shall we deal with him?"
"No need."
"...?"
"He didn't run. Gong Won-goo let him go. If that bastard had made up his mind, not a single one would have slipped away."
"......"
"And look at this. I walked right into it, hook, line, and sinker. Honestly... how is he even still alive? Did you say every last member of Won-goo's Services survived?"
"Yes."
"And Nam-seok? How did he lose?"
"Well, you see..."
"Tak."
"Yes, my lord."
"Tell me everything, without embellishment. I have no intention of interrogating you. This whole affair unfolded under my own direction, did it not?"
"He was defeated in single combat against Gong Won-goo."
Ganjeol let out a long, slow breath. He kept his mouth shut, exhaling through his nose like a vent of steam — and that breath alone told Tak exactly how deep the fury ran.
Then a scene flickered through Ganjeol's mind.
The first time he had met Gong Won-goo face to face. Even with him sitting right there, the man had been utterly self-assured. So confident, are you? Then stake your life on a bet.
At the time, Ganjeol had judged it more than fifty percent bluff. If he'd actually taken the bet, he probably could have dealt with Gong Won-goo right then and there — so he'd told himself, ever since he walked away from that table. The thought had circled in his head constantly, gnawing at him from time to time.
It only got worse after Shelter Sabbath began to flourish. If I had killed him then — or bent him to my will — that whole territory would belong to Ganjeol Point by now.
"So it wasn't a bluff after all..."
"My lord?"
"Nothing. Get in contact — now."
"Yes. Shall I have them propose a ransom?"
At that, Ganjeol turned his gaze to Tak.
"What are you talking about? A ransom?"
"Were you not planning to negotiate for his release?"
"In a situation like this, the side that bows its head first eats the worst of the loss. You make them name their demands first. Our raw power is beyond comparison anyway — and they know it. That's the only reason they haven't stormed this place already."
Tak's read on things was a little different, but he held his tongue. To a casual observer the mood might have seemed remarkably composed, but Tak knew better. When Ganjeol was truly, magnificently enraged, he wore an even more placid mask than usual. Tak also knew that scratching the wrong nerve at times like this earned you a catastrophe, so he simply did as he was told.
"I'll reach out immediately."
"How much should we offer?"
"The Tadersen ransom and compensation, plus a little extra on top — wouldn't that be right?"
"Not that. Nam-seok. That boy can't possibly come back in one piece, can he? We should be prepared to write off an arm at the very least."
"......"
Tak, completely blindsided by the reaction, found himself unable to answer right away.
"Hah... never mind. Send a team back to Mt. Yuhyang and start the investigation over from scratch. I distinctly remember someone telling me it was the Fourth Seju's flame."
"That is correct."
"Then how the hell did Gong Won-goo survive it?"
"......"
Tak couldn't answer right away. They were conversing normally enough on the surface, but inside he was a bundle of nerves, never knowing when Ganjeol might finally detonate.
"...Investigate it thoroughly. This isn't just any Seju — it's the Fourth. If she learns that we tried to use her, she will not sit still. That lunatic wo— no. Never mind. Just get it handled. Quickly."
"Yes, my lord. I'll commit more personnel to it."
THUD! CRACK!
Ganjeol had barely tapped the table, yet it boomed like a hammer blow, and a splitting sound ran through the thick hardwood. Tak flinched violently, reacting as though he'd taken the hit himself.
"That is not what I meant by committing more personnel. I said investigate properly. I need to know exactly what happened out there. Is that so hard to understand?"
"No, my lord. I will... find out the truth."
"And how, exactly?"
"If it truly was the Fourth Seju, she would have used magic. In that case, couldn't we call in the Sajung — the Four Monks?"
"Are they really capable of uncovering something like that?"
"Yes. I've heard the third of the four can read the traces of magic. Men like them could identify what spell was cast and how — which means they could uncover the truth of it."
The 'Sajung' were four mages of monastic origin — the so-called 'Psycho Monks.' Famous Named in their own right, Ganjeol Point had attempted to recruit them more than once.
They had refused every single offer.
It might seem absurd that four men could turn down an entire coalition, but when all four were Named, and all four wielded magic-related Gifts, even a massive coalition couldn't touch them lightly. No one was willing to absorb catastrophic losses just to seize them.
"Contact them fast. Tell them we'll pay handsomely."
"Yes, sir!"
"And this table — have it replaced. It's flimsy garbage."
The Won-goo Services crew returned to the shelter and stopped by the office first thing.
Danshin popped out at once to greet them.
"You held things down, huh."
"Yes, Director."
"You were worried, weren't you?"
"Ah... no, sir."
"No, were you... Whatever. Good work holding the fort."
"Are you all right, Director?"
"Why? Does my face look that bad?"
Won-goo's injured nose was healing, but it wasn't back to normal yet. Swollen up like a ballooned sausage compared to its usual state, his whole expression was unmistakably different from before.
"A little..."
"It's nothing. Anyway, you did well with the office. Next time something like today happens, seal the office first. Lock it down."
"Understood..."
"And don't meet with anyone other than Baek Seol, Sanghae, or Sapiens. That's the protocol. Got it?"
"Yes, Director."
"Go help them unload. We've got a lot of cargo."
"Right away, Director!"
Danshin scurried off, his face a shade brighter than before. Won-goo immediately called over Hyun-sung, who was busy setting down the luggage.
"Hyun-sung."
"Yes, Hyeong-nim."
"There's a meeting at Sanghae's place right away, so I have to head over there. You tidy things up here. Sort the spoils properly."
"Understood. Hyeong-nim — what about the Ganjeol Point captives? Should we simply release them?"
"Sapiens is handling that. They'll all fit comfortably in his prison, so don't worry about it. You focus on the spoils... actually, no. The spoils — Hye-ji! Over here!"
Won-goo called for Jeon Hye-ji. When it came to organizing goods, she was far more meticulous than Lee Hyun-sung.
Danshin was the best of all, but while he knew his household staples inside and out, he knew next to nothing about survivor equipment. More importantly, this haul wasn't for Won-goo's crew alone to keep — precise sorting mattered more than anything.
"Yes, Director."
"You handle the loot classification. Think you can manage?"
"I can."
"It has to be divided exactly by team. No disputes later."
"Understood."
"If anything's ambiguous, just set it aside. I'll deal with it myself."
"Yes, sir."
"Ttugi."
"Yes, Hyeong-nim."
"You scout out some space first. Montage's people, Pacific, Fresh, Yeongyeong — they'll all need somewhere to stay. Don't lump them in together; set up separate quarters for each."
"Understood, Hyeong-nim."
"Pick good places for them."
"Understood, Hyeong-nim!"
Orders issued, Won-goo set off for Sanghae's restaurant.
The roundtable convened again at Sanghae's place.
But it wasn't Sapiens or Sanghae standing at the front.
As always, it was Won-goo. He stood before them, ready to deliver the briefing.
"We just pulled off a big score, which means we have to brace for a harder push back. So for the time being, anyone who has goods to move or anywhere to travel — stop. Freeze all of it. And shop owners: starting from here, you're Number One."
Won-goo pointed at the owner seated at the very head of the table, then swept his finger counterclockwise all the way around. That was the rotation order, decided on the spot.
"Pull manpower and run patrols from the shelter entrance out to a one-kilometer radius. Twelve-hour shifts. Clear?"
"Director Gong, isn't that schedule a bit brutal?"
A young shop owner raised his hand and spoke up.
"Then get roadkilled by Ganjeol Point and die, I guess. It's not like the only people coming and going here are regulars. Don't you shop owners have families too? Fine, let's say you don't care about them. What about the visitors? If we can't block Ganjeol's damn snooping, word will spread fast. Real fast."
"......"
"......"
"......"
Won-goo had clearly been waiting for the question, and his answer came smooth and relentless — and not one of them could muster a rebuttal.
"Black Shelters have been dying off lately, business has been booming — you want to go back to the dark ages? This is wartime. Wartime. Everything changes in wartime, all of it. So what exactly are you haggling over?"
The meeting with the shelter's shop owners wrapped up with remarkable ease. Contrary to expectations of serious grumbling, they too grasped how dire the situation was.
That made the preparations smooth sailing. All that remained were the core people, and the conversations they needed to have among themselves.
"We've got one more big problem."
"We do. Buri Island. Ganjeol Point won't have missed it."
"If I were Ganjeol, I'd hit Buri Island first, one hundred percent. It hurts the most, and it's the easiest to strike."
"Do you have something in mind, Director Gong?"
Sanghae asked.
"Something in mind? All we can do is hold the line. If it were closer to the shelter I might try some tricks, but... there's no clever answer to this one."
"So it comes down to a contest of raw strength in the end."
"Before that... their morale will have taken a hit. And I've got a card coming that'll shake it further. We prepare in the gap. When does Abal arrive?"
"Neoguri-hyeong said she should've gotten in today, but she's running late."
"But she did say she was coming?"
Sapiens nodded.
"Then she'll come. Abal always does."
"Aigoo, a call comes in out of nowhere and now I've kept you all waiting."
The man descending the stairs with that unmistakable gait was Dr. Woo.
"We didn't talk about anything much. Just how to hold Buri Island."
"If there be another way to it, I'd like to hear it. Only way is more men."
"I'll be deploying as support for a while too."
"But will that alone suffice, pray tell? There be no telling when or how they'll come..."
"That's why you need to come out too, Dr. Woo."
"I already drew me rotation long ago. And Sapiens here will do the same, aye? Am I wrong?"
Sapiens nodded. And Dr. Woo let his gaze slide naturally over to Sanghae.
"I figured this was coming, so I've lined up people too."
"Eh? I never said a word to you?"
"Who did you hire?"
"Some Named who've been lazing around the neighborhood. I called a few in."
"Did you tell them the enemy is Ganjeol Point?"
Sanghae let out a sigh.
"Haah... the moment I mentioned it, they all turned me down. Still, I paid a premium and managed to snag a few."
"Who?"
"Ghost. And I'm in contact with the Yang sisters."
Ghost was the Named who'd joined them on the beastman hunting job. His combat ability wasn't anything exceptional, but having him along certainly wouldn't hurt — the phantom hound he commanded came with a colorful range of abilities.
"Ghost works. The Yang sisters don't."
"Why? Because of what happened last time?"
"Yeah. They're angling for a comeback, but the way I see it, those two should stick to information work and nothing else."
"Then I'll pull back that offer."
"Won't that still be a bit thin against Ganjeol Point, though? Even if they live in constant combat readiness ready to scramble at any moment... we still need a force that can actually hold."
"Then we scatter as much reconnaissance as we can, and have everyone fall back the instant Ganjeol Point is spotted."
"Even so, won't that be lacking?"
"Right — Sanghae. Any answer from the Mosquito gang?"
"Too expensive."
"Ah, for god's sake... is now the time to be pinching pennies? How many times have I told you — don't be a cheapskate. If Buri Island falls, those bastards get real talkative real fast. Then we're back to a fifty-fifty. You want to squander a winning position doing dumb shit?"
"Fine, fine. I'll reach out again."
"And Sapiens — let's bring that bastard in too."
"Who do you mean?"
"We've got one sitting in your prison, don't we? Yeong Chi-soo. The psychic."
"That one's a fanatic — impossible to control. If we pull him out now, the only thing we can actually move is Gusik."
"Then we make a deal with Gusik too. Gusik and Yeong Chi-soo together are a strong combo. You know that, right? Gusik even traded blows with Abal herself."
"His skills are certain, but is it wise?"
"We've already clapped the first-tier shackles on him. We'll find a way to add more. Or dangle a carrot or two."
"If it's Gusik, that's practically a guaranteed winning card in our hand."
"The problem is whether we can trust him. He's a man even the shelter expelled..."
"Come to think of it, there's no shortage of carrots to dangle. That bastard is obsessed with playing master. If we guarantee him his own domain, who knows — we might just bring him over to our side after all..."
Won-goo's voice trailed off into vagueness, but no concrete plan had actually formed in his head yet.